It must have been in or around 2003 that I was walking through the local department store De Bijenkorf that I saw some people queuing to get what seemed a signature from a rather attractive woman behind a small table with loads of CDs. Out of the context you might conclude this was Cecilia Bartoli, and you are right. I don’t know the cd and I didn’t buy it. Also, no signature.
Cecilia Bartoli was born in 1966 in Rome, in a family of singers. Already at age 9 she was singing the role of the shepherd boy in Tosca. From the late Eighties she was in high demand for operatic roles. Her voice is considered to be a coloratura mezzo, but she can sing in neighboring registers easily. She has specialized into baroque and early Italian romanticism, and has a pendant to create thematic albums. She devotes a lot of time into the study of her chosen theme, while also performing small gems of formerly unknown repertoire. In that sense, she does good things with the artistic room her fame allows.
From my own experience: beautiful music, but it demands some attention. If given that, it can certainly grow on you.